Beyond Man's Pal
by Shadowfang3000
Summary: "It won't end here, because I know that I'll die alone." A rather shoddy first attempt at Romance writing :P


**Beyond Man's Pal**

(A/N) It had to happen eventually :P

Well, a user by the name of Mr. War requested that I write a Ragna X Taokaka fic. Now, if you know me you'd understand I have less of a grasp on romance than a five year-old during a Christmas dinner, but writing something romantic for once seemed like an interesting challenge. After all, Ragna X Tao is adorable! :D

Even then, this is very rough around the edges. It comes across as more of a silly Friendship fic than a Romance one... But whatever, your poison xD

WARNING: Terrible Romance and awkward attempts at being adorable ahead! D:

**The Kitten and the sombre Man:**

To be honest, Ragna had given up hope. His blade to the left amongst a collection of drooping flowers and jagged stones, his lifeless arm outstretched to the right as if reaching out for something to cling on to, he lay still for some time. Why did it have to be him? Why did life always crouch down and swing a punch right into his stomach? Why did everything he tried to do result in... This...

"To make enemies, try and change something" Ragna thought, a spiteful chuckle coming out as a withering wheeze. He remembered what he'd said to Saya once, such a protective little girl. He was scaling a tree, swinging like an ape against her protests: "Come down Ragna! You could fall and die!"

"I won't." He said, leaping back down to be with her. "Because I know that I'll die alone, Saya."

Looking back at it now, it must've been another example of fate's twisted humour. Here he was, decades later, alone in a foreign, unfriendly plain of infinitely stretching waste. Alone, bloodied, beaten, and to put it bluntly, finished. The journey ends: Pull the curtains, refund our guests and escort the booing crowd expecting a master-piece out through Gates 1 and 2. This is but another story lost amongst countless others who thought they could make a difference.

It was then that Ragna noticed something sticking out of the longer strands of grass: A tail... A highly visible and wiggling tail... Attached to the posterior of a rather peculiar looking cat... Girl... Thing...

"Nya? Is that Jam? I love Jam!" came a muffled cry; no doubt from the girl in the grass who was certain she was being stealthy. With no energy to move, and little care about the dumbfounded cat, Ragna closed his eyes and lay motionless. The grass rustled, dying leaves crunched, and slowly but surely the Cat eventually crouched over him, staring at his face as if fearing he'd jump out and slash at her. The Cat brought her head down close, her breath caressing Ragna's neck, and proceeded to make a series of brief, rapid and quiet sniffs.

"Hmm, doesn't smell like Jam. But it looks like Jam!... Hmmm..." Lifting an eyelid stealthily, the length and sharpness of the Cat's fangs certainly scared Ragna. So much so, he used what little strength he could muster to try and flop away to the side. Maybe he'd find a hill? He could pick up some speed rolling down and make his way to freedom! Of course, this flop was rather pathetic, but it certainly interested the Cat.

"Wah! It's moving! ... Nyu?" The Cat prodded him, generating a low grunt from his prone form. The Cat put a paw to her mouth, as if pondering something. After a minute or so of sweet silence, she suddenly spoke up.

"Are you all right, Spikey Jam Man?" She asked curiously. Ragna pondered what a girl of this mental capacity could possibly do for him. In reality, he knew exactly what he wanted her to do, but was savouring the time he had with someone who wasn't trying to kill him for once.

"W... Water..." He struggled to say, he tongue limp and lifeless. The Cat took off with great speed, returning seconds later with soaked paws.

"It won't work! The water keeps running away!" She growled irritably. Ragna replied by tossing his arm to his hip, and fondling his empty canteen.

"Fff... Fill that..." Lacking thumbs or fingers due to the strange hoodie she wore, the Cat reached out with both paws to grab the container. Ragna enjoyed the sensation of her soft hoodie against his hand a tad bit too much, saddened by her departure once more. He didn't know why he was feeling so much for someone he'd just met, someone who he'd said barely three words to, someone who was quite frankly a fool. As if to couple with the thought, the Cat returned with the canteen lid undone, spilt half of the contents on the ground in a trail behind her, and upon reaching him poured it on his face like a Gardener watering he flowers. It was only when he started choking that she stopped, dropping her hands to her sides and smiling.

"Water! Nice-nice!~" Ragna groaned, glaring at the girl.

"Wrong..." The Cat tilted her head, a confused "Nyu?" emerging from under her hood. He raised an arm slowly and pointed to the Canteen.  
"Feed it to muh..." The dryness returned to his mouth, and he stopped speaking. The Cat stared at it for a while, turning it over to examine it from different angles, only to giggle in mockery.

"Silly! Only dummies eat leather! I tried it once, eww!" The Cat left to fetch more water, Ragna mentally face-palming as she went. Once more she returned, the Canteen firmly sealed this time. She twisted off the lid before a firm "Stop!" came from Ragna.

"Sit me up... Help me drin...Kuh..." Surprisingly, the Cat followed his order. She knelt down at this side, clumsily lifted his head to rest upon her lap, and granted him brief but mesmerising sips from the canteen. It came as a shock to Ragna to see this foolish girl act so... Motherly... Like a Cat to her kittens almost. From where he was he snuck a look up to see the face of the girl, no longer shrouded by total blackness. Her skin a healthy tan, hair an enticing gold and two eyes glowing a fiery red, Ragna couldn't help but be awe struck by her beauty. He'd never even considered women before, but seeing this girl who he had only met minutes ago care for him like a family member drew him in.

Hook, line, sinker.

With an audible pop, the Cat pulled the tip of the Canteen from Ragna's starving lips. He longed for more water not out of thirst, but even he knew he had to get himself moving again. The Cat leaned over, her head upside-down in Ragna's view.

"Tasty? How are you? Owie anywhere?" She asked happily. Ragna grunted, suddenly realising the pain he was in. Now a tad bit more confident in the abilities of his feline friend, he raised his arms weakly.

"The cuts on my arms sting a lot." A confident laugh came from the Cat, like someone who'd just been given the results to the test they're about to sit.

"Don't fear! Doctor Tao is in the house!" With that, she leant down and began licking furiously at the wounds. Ragna couldn't help but feel embarrassed about it: If a human did something like that to you, wouldn't you? He was certain this "Tao" didn't feel that it was intimate in any way, but Ragna resisted. A shame since he felt somewhat flattered by her insistence, but a necessity none the less.

"S-Stop! That's not really healthy..." Tao barely registered him, tilting her head whilst she continued to lap at his arm.

"Hmm? Why? What's wrong?" Upon saying this she lifted her head and stared into his eyes, tongue drooping out from her open mouth.

They were close.

They were very close.

If you thought the distance between your eyebrows was close, this would make you reconsider. Did she have any concept of personal space? Ragna jumped from a sudden loud explosion, followed by another, and another: It was his heart-beat.

"We b-both might get a... A... A disease... If yo-" Ragna's trembling voice was cut off by the sudden shouting of Tao

"DIZZY!? That's bad! I KNOW!" Out of nowhere, she swang herself onto his lap and held his arms still. If it wasn't for her stupidity, Ragna would've thought he was about to be raped. She smiled, leaning in.

"Boobie Lady always tells me to stay still after I chase things and feel dizzy." She whispered covertly, as if she was sharing an ancient secret to him and him alone. Ragna glanced at the night sky like it was a distraction, and realised that he'd been with her for at least four hours. Time certainly does fly when you're with someone you lo-

"I think we should find somewhere to... Rest... Tao." Ragna quickly said, forgetting the girl that had him pinned to the lazy grass. To this, she shook her head.

"Don't move! I'm here." Ragna couldn't help but shudder after hearing this. The amount of compassion and concern dripping off those words like they'd just emerged from a thrashing lagoon was unbelievable, and he felt honoured. He was urged to respond en suite, but nerves got the best of him and he did what he did best: He stayed silent.

It was an awkward silence. Well, it was to him at least, and he wanted to change it. He reached for his Canteen resting on its side behind him, and offered it to the girl sitting on him. She smiled a tad bit wider than usual, and sloppily drank from it like a wild beast. Like a shy Japanese school-girl from some crummy anime, Ragna noted all the indirect kisses he was currently sharing with her. He longed to hold her in his arms, look into her eyes and return those kis-

"Nya! Tasty!" She leant over him and placed the Canteen back where it came from. "Thankies!" she chirped. Before Ragna could even reply with a bland "You're welcome", she stretched loudly and gently came to rest her head on his chest. The term "Crawled out of one hole, land right into another" came to mind, as Ragna found himself under a rather beautiful and unconscious cat-girl who seemed to be using him as a cuddly bear. Ragna's mind at this point finally decided to legally split into two, and suddenly he found himself debating with his most recent enemy: His sexual drive.

"_Go ooooon_!" His drive said, egging him on. "_She obviously likes you! Why else would she bloody LAY on you?"_ His reasoning mind fought back, shaking its metaphorical finger.

"_She's a cat! Maybe in her culture, laying on someone is a symbol of friendship and nothing more_?" His drive scoffed at this, staring into the sky.

"_Rather an exact tradition there. So what? I wasn't telling him to toss her onto the ground and have his way with her. Just a lil'kiss eh? Come on, you know you want to!" _Unexpectedly, his reasoning mind didn't protest to this.

"_... He's bloody well right you know. Go on, a light one on the head will do. Nothing major, you're still young._" A rather loud snortle came from his drive, but it decided to shake hands and come to a mutually beneficial agreement with his reasoning mind. Ragna swallowed dryly, licked his lips, and slowly inched his head forward. She looked so peaceful in her slumber, soft and gentle breaths rhythmically emerging from her sleeping form. To be truthful, he'd never actually gone so far as to even hold hands with a girl before, and this was his first experience in trying to be romantic. Lips pursed, Ragna quickly planted the smallest and lightest of kisses on the forehead of the sleeping girl. Victorious in his struggle, he bravely placed a hand against her cheek and leant close.

"Th-Thank you, Tao... For everything."

"You're welcome!" She giggled happily, wide awake having never been asleep. Returning his kiss with her own soft peck to his lips, she casually decided to try and actually get some kip.

And as he considered the warmth, the love, and the joy of that experience, he came to a conclusion: She was certainly more than met the eye.

And it looked like he wasn't going to die for a very long time.

(A/N): God, that was fluffier than my back D:

Cheesy, silly, and unsatisfying! What do you think? :O


End file.
